Huntsville gazette., 1887-04-16
NUMBER 21.

Of goods upon the roustabouts at pier "a
and IS in Ney York. AMI the Dock street
station at Philadelphia, as nearly all OF
our Western-bound fre ght was put in the
cars at either one or the other of these
three places. We employed detectives
and all Imaginable devices, and found
finally that our employees at these points
were above suspicion. As am in charge
Of all crookedness on Z our road
east of Pittsburgh. lit theaa-became
my duty TO follow the robberies to this
city. After most exila us tive searchSof
the entire division of the Pennsylvania
railroad up to Pittsburgh, l came to the
conclusion that the robberIes we're com.
mitted west of Pittsburgh. We then
devoted ourselves entirely to the Westeru
division. After two months work
we found that the robberies were COM
rnitted between Pittsburgh and Dennison;
that out Of eighty crews, seventy-tivos
were practising great game of robbery.
We were badly stalled at first by the face
that the seals ON the cars
were generally found intact with
they reached Columbus on their way
westward. Then commenced a system of (,
espionage on every mile of siding be.
tween here and Dennison. Day Midnight
marked and decoy goods were used. we
found that local freight was generally
untouched; that the robberies when
committed on Union Line shipments.
Well and good. One dark night one OF j
our brightest men stumbled against the
mystery Of the seals and the
method by which they were sue
cessfully tampered with Concealed
behind car, he saw the freight crew
come to Union Line car. The wire was
pulled out of the seal, the door was 4
thrown open and the car entered. In
short time the men emerged, carrying
lot Of plumber. They made off to the
caboose, and the conductor pulled back the
door, ran the wire through the seal, where
it had been pulle out, and with board
struck it blow. The wire went back
to its place, the blow united the soft
lead again without destroying the
lettering on either side and the seal was
apparently untouched. saw one of these,
and it was only by tho closest scrutiny
that q person could detect the sign
of tampering with it. All this being
made clear, our course was much
easier. The individuals of these crews
were then each Of them tracked down,
and may say here, that so closely were
the stolen goods located that out of anthc
arrests made last night and this morn
ing there was not ,one man but
had stolen stuff eli ther upon him or in his
room. OF course you understand that our
methods used in ascertaining all this can
not be mads public Suffice it to say,
that we have our hands on every thievish
employe, and we are in easy reach of
those who are not arrested. When
say we, mean Of course, Mr. Gillkerson
first, as to him belongs the.
exclusive credit of the rich haul that
filed the drag net / can give few illus
trations of the spirit of these employees.
In one case, just lately, the pursuit was
80 hot that twenty-five boxes OF file,
cigars were hastily burned in a caboose
stove. In another case "tip'' resulted
in two bolts of fine silk being
thrown from caboose into the
Monongahela river while crossing
the Pan-H mi lie brilge. In anothcr
instance crew broke open a car and
found ii full of organs. On5 OF the men
was SO enraged by fading nothing Of the
stealable Kind that he thrust an iron bar
into an organ and ruined it. We have
evidence that a freight conductor broke
into car, opened a piano and sat and
played it all night, stopping at midnight
to eat his supper off the polished
top. The same fellow was humping
piano in q dive last night when captured
Another brakeman, who lives on Wylio
avenue, stole bolt of cloth, had suit
made for himself and gave the cloth for
two other suits to two of his friends.
Another man has become an expert on
stolen ACCORDION. In all my ex
perience of twenty-nine years | never
saw such taste for miscellaneous steal
ing. Every thing except coffin and
blacksmith,s anvil has been stolen and
made use of Some of our detectives as
sured me this morning that not man.was
arrested but had from half dozen to a
dozen pairs of clean socks Of the finest
quality and q large assortment of shirts
Of all kinds.'